Two Sides of the Same Coin
by Unknown Souldreamer
Summary: See inside for the complete summary, gased on the game. Ryder's tired of a monotonous life at Blue Lagoon, what happens when she's finally assigned to work on the AVTR Program? Chaos, romance, and a life-affecting decision, that's what.


**A/N**: This is my first Avatar story. So, kindly concrit in a review, please.

'Tis based on the game, not movie, though I have not decided if I want some movie elements in it.

Language and the occasional mention of alcohol will appear.

May be OOC. I apologize for that.

Disclaimers: James Cameron's Avatar movie/game goes not belong to me in any way, shape, or form.

Summary: Lance Corporal 'Able' Ryder has spent 3 months of her time in the Blue Lagoon. But now that's about to change. Commander Falco has ordered her to report to Dr. Rene` Harper of the AVTR Program and spend time with him and two other Avatars to learn more about Pandora and the Na'vi, as a way to befriend the natives and more importantly, find the mole. They give her 2 months to do so. After that, choices will be direr. It's either the Na'vi or the RDA now. But with a blooming romance under her hands, will Ryder stick devoted to the 'Sky People' or will she join her lover in the fight for Pandora's freedom?

Pairings: Female Ryder x Harper. Maybe some other people, too.

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**Two Sides of the Same Coin**

**Prologue**

**Video Blog 1**

**Year 2152, Months on Pandora: 3**

Strange murmurs are being heard in the background. "What the hell? I'm working on the blog now, so quit bugging me!"

A young woman, approx. 30, is seen muttering under her breath. "I'm no housewife, so they better treat me as such."

The woman sits down in a nearby chair and faces screen. "The name's Ryder. No one dare call me 'Able', 'cause that nickname gone. My first name's classified. I'm 30 years old and a Lance Corporal on the planet Pandora. My physical features, as you can see, are quite blunt. Cropped black hair, brown eyes, and pale skin since I was born. Personality? Well, I'll describe that in several words, because what's the point of telling you my entire persona when I preferred to keep that hidden under lock and key? I'm uncaring for most things, I prefer to be treated as a 'soldier' in the field and not a 'woman', and I'd like for this blog to be kept short. And yes, I am single, because I am who I am. Anyone got a problem with that?"

Grace Augustine appears on an adjacent screen. "I do. Cut the act, Ryder, and keep this one sweet and short. Emphasis on_ sweet_. And talk about the AVTR Program."

Ryder sighs at this. "Dr. Augustine, this is my little show to deal with. I've done this much already," She points to a list in her hands, "see? Bio, physical traits, personality, just the program to mention. Do you seriously want me to redo this all over again and waste precious time that could instead be used for studying Pandora?"

Augustine laughs. "Get real, Ryder. You haven't even started exploring every nook and cranny of that beautiful planet. It also seems to me that you developed an _attitude _and a bit of _sarcasm._"

Ryder throws up her hands in ennui. "Well, that's what a monotonous work schedule does to 'ya."

"So you haven't received any information about your mission for the AVTR Program, yet?" Augustine inquires. Seeing Ryder shake her head, as if with sadness, she continued, "Shame. If only you would talk about yourself more nicely, with actual effort, then proceed to speak about the program you are a part of, we might see some progress. Maybe even your new objective…?"

Ryder opened her mouth in shock, but no words came out. When something finally came to her mind, it croaked out like this, "You…you…had the new mission the entire time and didn't tell me about it? I could have been out, running as an Avatar, if you simply never started the mindless chatter," She then changed her tone of voice, "may I please have it, then?

Augustine looked at her strangely. "If you paid attention and did what I asked, you would be gone already."

Cursing under her breath, Ryder looked at Augustine straight in the eye and said, "I'll get to it, Doctor. Just give me a few minutes and it'll be done in no time." Suddenly, the screen with the doctor's face flickered off, meaning she got the message.

"Okay, guess all my previous work's crap now," she said, pressing delete on the keyboard. "On to business." She coughed a bit. "Lance Corporal Ryder, video blog numero uno, is now in session."

"My name's Ryder and I'd prefer if my past nickname, 'Able', not be used in the current setting. Things are different now…" She drifts off, but then continues, "My first name is classified with a capital C. I'm 30 years old and my status in the RDA is Lance Corporal. My physical features include what you can clearly see: Cropped black hair, brown eyes, and pale skin. I won't delve any deeper. Personality-wise, I'm an uncaring person who doesn't have much. I like to be treated like a 'soldier' and not as my gender suggests. And yes, I am single. Am I upset about that? Gah, my work's been keeping me company. That's probably all I need."

"Like I said before, I don't care for much. But how exactly did I end up here, you wonder? I signed up for the AVTR Program almost immediately, finding it fascinating and such to be able to be changed into one of _them. _The Na'vi. Well, we're almost exact replicas, just a few minor differences to be sorted out."

"I've been staying at Blue Lagoon for almost 3 months. How boring and tedious is it to be doing the same things over and over again in the short period of time? Don't mind me; I'm just easily irritated when work gets dull. Wake up, breakfast, defend camp from Viper Wolves, lunch, rescue troops from secluded regions, lock signals, make sure GMIs are in order, dinner, patrol rim of camp, sleep. And then do all that all over again!"

"I want to see Pandora differently, through the eyes of an Avatar. I want to be able to explore the region without getting hurt, chased, or chastised. Meet new people, Na'vi most likely. And maybe it'll relive me of my recent apathetic tendencies."

Ryder looks at her list, saying each checkpoint softly as she reads it. "Hhm, I guess I'm done. Time to check on Dr. Augustine and see what is in store." She turns back to the screen, "Lance Corporal Ryder, vlog nombres un is complete." The screen is then shut off.

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**A/N**: Hey, I guess I did add movie elements in this. Strange…

I know it looks dull, but it was just meant to be a little prequel before the actual thing. I worked on Ryder's personality a bit, if you noticed. She spoke various languages (Spanish and French) probably because it's an international soldier thing (She's been there, done that). I looked them up, so it might be off.

I won't update this until I finish my other stories, which I've been neglecting.

Please review and tell me what's wrong with it! Grammatical errors, character portrayals, the works.

Word Count: 1164 words (Impressive for _moi_ to only take a day.)

~Unknown Souldreamer


End file.
